Its a complex issue that doesn’t need to be. There’s an agreement with the 99 Seat Theatres and the Actors Equity Association that exempts smaller non-profit theatres from paying a union scale in exchange for allowing actors to hone their craft, make “art” if you will. Its been in force for ages, it what allows dozens of small theatres spread about Los Angeles to operate. Without it they would wither and actors more interested in the art and developing their talent will be shut out.

Step in I Love 99.org to put forth all the facts and explain why its important and what you can do to preserve the agreement with Actors Equity. Within their website are many links to tools to help your voice be heard if you wish to keep 99 Seat Theatre alive in Los Angeles.

Of course I have an emotional interest in keeping 99 Seat Theatre alive in Los Angeles. It goes beyond keeping my friends busy, its about keeping art alive in the city. The loss of the 99 Seat Theatre would be devastating to them as well as the businesses around the theatres that depend on the traffic they generate. I’ve taken my love of small theatre to the next level and am working on the board of directors with Sierra Madre Playhouse to help them grow and evolve in the community. I don’t take this potential loss lightly.

Please support this cause in any way you can. Tweet your support and use the hashtags #ILove99, #Pro99 . #LAThtr

I wish I had more information for you, but I just got notice and no press release with a lot of details. Altadena Heritage is putting on the discussion with 3 speakers on the importantance of Hahamonga and the Arroyo Seco river system that brings rain water from the San Gabriesl to the ocean. The speakers are:

Dave Douglas, PhD, Geologist and Dean of PCC School of Science and Mathematics

Perhaps, like many people, you observe Valentines Day. I do not. In my household, on February 14, we observe CHEESEBURGERTINES DAY, a far superior holiday with a singular purpose: it is a day on which you get someone who likes you to buy you a cheeseburger. Yes, it is a fake holiday that I made up. No, that does not make it any less of a holiday.

While the inaugural Cheeseburgertines Day took place at The Apple Pan (NATURALLY), we celebrate Cheeseburgertines Day at a different burger joint every year, in honor of the amazing plethora of great burger places in Los Angeles. We have been to fancy burger places (Cheeseburgertines Day 2014: The Tripel), and less fancy but no less delicious burger places (Cheeseburgertines Day 2013: Corner Burger).

This year, we hit up Shaka Shack Burgers in Santa Monica. Shaka Shack is Hawaiian-tiki-surfboard-themed, which appeals greatly to my appetite for kitsch; and the burgers were fantastic, A+ cheeseburgers, which appealed greatly to my appetite for burgers. They were seriously good burgers that I would pick over In-n-Out any day.

Special mention, though, goes to Shaka Shack’s fries, which were possibly the best fries that I’ve had in Los Angeles. You know how the best fries are the really crispy ones at the bottom of the basket? Well, every fry in our order was one of those. And you can get them with truffle salt. Not the healthiest choice, maybe, but that is why Cheeseburgertines Day comes but once a year.

It was with not a little fanfare less than two years ago that the road around the reservoir known as Lake Hollywood was reopened to walkers, runners and cyclists, a scenic route that had been closed since landslides during those crazy rains of 2005.

Little did I know that when my wife Susan and I drove over there this morning and set out with our faithful — and needless to say well-behaved and leashed-up — border collie mix Ranger to explore that roughly 3.3-mile loop for the first time, we would be greeted by this sign at the north gate and again at the east gate:

Being that I’m law-abiding to a fault I dutifully turned us around and we made our way to the far more enlightened Parc du Griffith where dogs are not a crime. Soon we found our way along a loop that included a rigorously vertical set of dirt steps carved into the hillside and leading to the oasis that is Amir’s Garden.

While one part of me is all “Thank you!” to the dog-banning powers that be at Lake Hollywood for allowing us to discover a previously unknown aspect of Griffith Park, the other part is all “You dog-banning powers that be at Lake Hollywood totally suck!” And it was that latter half that got all googly once I got home in searching out the specific statute — LAMC 64.06 — authorizing the prohibition. Turns out it’s an ordinance designed to prevent water contamination that reads a little somethin’ like this (on the other side of the jump):

I’m an unapologetic fan of Frank Lloyd Wright. So even though I’ve toured his Mayan-revival masterpiece several times over my life, when I heard the city was going to celebrate the re-opening of his Hollyhock House following a two-year, $4-million dollar restoration, by throwing open wide the 94-year-old landmark’s concrete doors for a 24-hour reacquainting period — at no charge and shut up: pictures allowed inside! — I told my wife Susan that we were going to celebrate Valentine’s Day morning by getting up early and getting ourselves over to Barnsdall Park to get all up in some of L.A.’s mostly freshly polished historic starchitecture.

And like thousands of other SoCalians, we did. And it was glorious. Sure we had to park down on the street and then wait in line beginning at 7:30 a.m. for about 90 minutes, and yeah, there were those foodies behind us in said line who just seriously could not shut up about how transcendental the foie-gras was at Union in Pasadena, but once inside…? Ah yes. Now that was transcendental, and Wrightly so.

My Flickr photoset of the thumbnails below is here. Going forward, Hollyhock House will be open for self-guided tours ($7 per person; no cameras allowed inside) Thursday-Sunday from 11 a.m. – 4 p.m.

Long time Los Angeles resident Gary Owens of radio and TV Fame passed away today. He was the voice of KFI for years but is known nationally as the enthusiastic announcer and newcaster on Laugh In a TV sieries in the late 60s and early 70s. RIP Funny man, thanks for the laughs.

When I read current stories with headlines along the lines of “Subway To The Sea Could Reach Century City By 2026,” it makes maps like the one below of Los Angeles’ mass transit system from 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, ONE HUNDRED and 1, 2, and THREE years ago seem all the more simultaneously sigh-inducing glorious and heartbreaking.

Feast yer eyes upon the elaborate system we had way back in the year Nineteen Hundred and Twelve (cleek to enlargify) and as you do consider not only:

the comparative low amount it would have cost to keep and upgrade through the years versus what it cost to dismantle entirely in favor of the huge sums required to build our long over-burdened freeway system;

and the massive amounts it will be costing us to be able to get to Century City in 15 years (probably more like 18).

click to embiggen. One lively and one half dead goldfishies found on my front door this morning.

Oh those kids today. I don’t know what to make of this. Is it a harmless prank or is it a warning like a horsehead on your lawn by the mafia? I think its the former and certainly is a lot better than getting your lawn forked or trees teepeed.

My youngest is a senior at MHS and 3 of his friends awoke to the same “gift” this morning. Who knows why but we’re in a mad dash to get them in a proper bowl and fed.

Whatever it is, it is entertaining for the grand who calls it a “shark”…he’s 2.

Time is limited and the citizens in Pasadena aligned against the counties plan to rape, scrape and gut the Hahahmonga watershed need your help. All efforts to bring reason and preserve the area have fallen on deaf ears.

Nancy Youngblut and John Prosky star in Sierra Madre Playhouse’s production of “A Walk in the Woods”

Last night was the opening of Sierra Madre Playhouse’s performance of “A Walk in the Woods”. It opened to a sold out house. Its an entertaining, often poignant look at the world of diplomatic negotiators during the Reagan Era arms talks and their interchange on what makes us the same and different at the same time. This play by Lee Blessing is directed by Geoffry Wade.

The four scenes take place during the four seasons in an American election year in a secluded forest in Switzerland. The jaded and cynical Soviet negotiator Andrey Botvinnik is portrayed by John Prosky. Andrey has survived several U.S. Negotiators and capably guides his newst adversary through the mine field of arms negotiation. He does this through humor and utter avoidance of the task at hand. The new American negotiator that he must work with is Joan Honeyman played by Nancy Youngblut. Joan is the spunky, starry eyed new kid on the block with ideals she can work out a deal to end the arms race that both sides can live with. Andrey foils her at every step often leaving Joan aggravated and flabberghasted. And the audience roaring with laughter.

Interlaced in this is the big politics of each nations history as a world power and fear of a past repeated. All good stuff, hard to believe one can laugh condsidering the task at hand and the issues they face. Its also a very enlightening look at the process. You walked away wondering how it all went down and how anything was ever accomplished. Or was it? I highly recommend “A Walk in the Woods” if you are looking for a fun and enlightening theater experience. These two actors carried you through the process of negotiations and becoming friends that respect each other very well.

This play is the 4th in the 2014-2015 Season that explores the American experience as told by American playrights. This play and those to come are what will continue Sierra Madre Playhouse’s transformation into a Regional Destination Theatre.

I’m telling you, I’ve had the best adventures since I started blogging. Most are because I used my “media credentials” to kick open doors and invite myself into new experiences. Others because someone sought me out. I’ve learned a lot about how this city ticks. Or doesn’t.

An example of just that sort of adventure came about last week for two of us here at blogging.la. Both Joz and I were invited by manufacturers who sought us out to bring us to Detroit for the NAIAS. Yes…they hauled these Angeleno’s out of our warm climate into a raging snow storm for one of the planets premiere auto shows. Joz as a member of Buick’s “Diversity Crew” was wined and dined and met with executives from all over the corporation. I as a “Digital Influencer” with Ford spent my time grazing and touring Ford’s first plant at Piquette Ave and their newest F-150 plant at the Rouge as bookends to 2 very busy days of auto show reveals and seminars. Poor Joz and I were so busy that we were able to barely keep in touch via text. We did manage 30 seconds for our “selfie” in Cobo before our corporate hosts shuttled us off.

I get daily invites to events around the city. Some I take, some I pass to others, others I just ignore as they don’t interest me. You get to chose what you write about here which is a good thing. No editor telling you what to do, its your choice in your voice.

The point is you make what you want out of blogging.la when you are here. Commit to at least an article a week, more if you can manage and it becomes a ticket to adventures. If you’re up to the challenge and want to join us contact me and I’ll get you started with the vetting.

Last night on the anniversary of the Northridge Earthquake, I watched CalTech Seismologist Lucy Jones tell reporters assembled at a press conference that for most angelenos it was a small one. Ha! How I wish I had been one of most angelenos. But I wasn’t. Not by a long shot.

The fires down below: This is a crappy snap I made the morning of January 17, 1994, from a pull out on Mulholland looking down into a San Fernando Valley that was almost entirely filled with smoke and dust.

There were two times in my life when I thought my ticket had been punched: that morning 21 years ago holding onto a door jam for dear life while it seemed the world was shaking apart, and a traffic collision I had six months later — which ironically wouldn’t have occurred if it weren’t for quake-related repairs forcing me to relocate temporarily to Van Nuys where I was on my motorcycle when that collision happened… but that’s another story.

In fairness, Jones wasn’t belittling or minimalizing what took place. She was basing that statement on the length of the fault that generated that temblor — 10 miles — in comparison to the San Andreas fault, 200 miles or more of which could rupture — correction WILL rupture. When that event happens it won’t be discussed 21 years later from a perspective of relative percentages impacted. Those of us that survive that eventual catastrophe will ALL be thrust into an exquisite chaos.

The plain truth is that with this certainty, most of us are still woefully unprepared. Maybe we’re gambling that we’ll dodge such a cataclysm in our lifetime, or maybe were deluded into thinking there’s really nothing that can be done and to just roll with what comes when the land rocks. It’s probably a lame metaphor, but that’s a bit like not being able to stop from hopping into a taxi that we know is going to crash, yet refusing to fasten our seatbelt on our way to that potential doom.

Instead put the “do” in doom. Google “earthquake preparedness.” Here, I’ll do it for you: earthquake preparedness. You don’t have to go full doomsday survivalist, but you need to do something/anything. Stockpile supplies and develop a plan that will make the ensuing nightmare a little less nightmarish. Having something as trivial as a few gallons of water, some nutrition bars, spare batteries, flashlights, a transistor radio and first aid supplies will seem like gold when the time comes to need them.

The good folks at Esotouric Bus Tour Adventures, Kim Cooper and Richard Schave do a lot more than give really nifty tours of the city. They are historians with a major heart on for the city. In the best way of course.

This weeks newsletter outlined the winners and losers in their efforts to help preserve the cities architectural history. It outlines 25 things this year, good bad and ugly, that happened in terms of historic preservation.

The most exciting bit was the passing of city ordinance 13-1104 requiring public notification when any building more than 45 years is to be demolished. Why does this matter? It will give preservation groups around the city the chance to speak up and stop the destruction of those building with a history or architectural significane from being trashed in the name of progress and a new high density mixed use project. Not all buildings need to be preserved that are that old, but many should as it is part of the texture and character of the city that shouldn’t be trashed for a new parking lot or apartment jungle.

Pic by me of the Broadway Arcade while on an iphone safari. Click to embiggen

As has been reported, well, just about everywhere, housing prices in Los Angeles are at an all-time dismal high. As a chronically underemployed academic type, I’m pretty resigned to the fact that my cats and I will be renters as long as we deign to call this fair city home. I was curious, though, about what house prices would have been like in my neighborhood, when it was first established.

I live on the very western edge of Culver City, in a neighborhood practically underneath the 405, near the Ballona Creek. (The city recently put up some banners along Sepulveda proclaiming that the neighborhood’s name is “Culver Village,” but will always and forever refer to it fondly as “Tito’s Tacos-adjacent.”) Most of the homes here are bungalows, built in the 1940s and 1950s.

After a bit of digging in a historical newspaper database, I turned a little gem – a 1951 LA times article about then-new residential developments in Sunkist Park, which I just south of the Ballona Creek. Not quite my neighborhood, but pretty close by. According to the article, developers built about 315 homes in the area, about half of which were sold before construction began. You could pick a house in one of fifteen different styles (including the super cute storybook ranch-style house pictured below), and they came pre-decorated: “early buyers have a selection of tile, wallpaper, linoleum, and paint colors,” the Times reported.

Prices ranged from $10,777 to $11,100. Adjusted for inflation, and that would be $97,884 to $100,818 in today’s dollars – which makes current house prices seem all the more depressing!

Sunkist Park, it turns out, used to be the location of the Culver City airport, which, according to Julie Lugo Cerra, Culver City’s city historian, began operations in 1927. It closed in 1951, and the Sunkist Park housing development was built on part of the airport’s former site. I’m curious to know more about the provenance of the neighborhood’s name – was it once the site of a Sunkist citrus orchard? Did the developers (Richard Diller and Irving Kalsman, according to the Times) have a connection to Sunkist? I’m going to do a bit more digging to see what I can find, but in the meantime, if anyone knows anything else about the origins of the neighborhood, comment away!